Seat Filler: NYC Theater Guide for September 2012

The Advocate’s man on the New York theater scene soaks up Jake Gyllenhaal, gathers gay dirt on Patti LuPone, gets high on a meth-addled adventure, and sees more of Perez Hilton than he ever imagined.

BY Brandon Voss

September 26 2012 9:54 AM ET

If There Is I Haven’t Found It YetIn Nick Payne’s soggy drama about one family’s failure to communicate in the shadow of imminent global disaster, Jake Gyllenhaal makes a fine American stage debut with a spot-on Cockney accent as scruffy pot-smoking uncle to an overweight, severely bullied, and suicidal 15-year-old girl played by heartbreaking Hairspray alum Annie Funke. Too bad the play gets bogged down in a flood of showy theatrics that hinge on watery metaphors.Laura Pels Theatre, through November 25.

Patti IssuesBen Rimalower is turning lemons and spilt T into a delicious Arnold Palmer with his insidery tribute to idol and colleague Patti LuPone. Marking the out NYC director’s debut as playwright and performer, the captivating solo piece draws parallels between his connection to the diva and his strained relationship with his dad, who came out as gay when he was a child. It’s not exactly I Am My Own Wife, but it’s smart, poignant, and dishy as hell.The Duplex, through November 1.